Transit of Mercury Outreach at Shepard Park, Cocoa Beach Florida

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Nov 15

2019

by Matthias Schmitt

I picked Shepard Park in Cocoa Beach as a sidewalk astronomy outreach place to honor Alan Shepard, Mercury program astronaut and first American in space, as well as the opportunity to see a SpaceX rocket launch.

I prepared several things for my outreach: a Mercury helmet, a Mercury t-shirt, an Explore Scientific telescope (I am an ES brand ambassador) with a solar filter, a Sony A7RII for transit photography, an orange (a stand-in for the Sun), and a sand grain (there were plenty around). I set up distances from the Sun (orange) with chalk marks to illustrate the size and ratios of the Solar System and a chalk sun with the path of Mercury's transit.

The feeling that I experienced to see little Mercury at second contact was indescribable. How can such a celestial event cause happiness? 

I had about 20 people approach me and look through the telescope and experienced a "WOW" moment. The public LOVES this kind of stuff when given a chance to connect. 

Midway through, I saw the launch of a SpaceX  Starlink mission.

I hired a professional photographer to record pictures and educational clips, which I will post on YouTube and happy to share with the AWB.

After some periods of clouds, the last 30 minutes of the transit were clear for observations, and after the Fourth Contact and the show was over, it started to rain, magically.